Virtual Weitzman School Talk | Creative Collaborators: A conversation between Stuart Weitzman, W’63 and Wendy Evans Joseph, C'77, moderated by Mark Gardner, March’00

This talk will provide the Weitzman alumni community an opportunity to hear from Stuart Weitzman, W’63 and Wendy Evans Joseph, C'77 discuss their careers and how designers successfully build creative networks with business clients. This talk will be moderated by Mark Gardner, MArch’00.

About the Participants:

Speakers:

Wendy Evans Joseph, C'77 is the founder of Studio Joseph. Under her leadership, Studio Joseph has completed a diverse array of public, institutional, and cultural projects, including Penn's Larry Robbins House, the home of Management and Technology, a pedestrian bridge for The Rockefeller University, and a highly acclaimed pavilion in Webb Chapel Park, Dallas. Her passion for art and museum culture, and public education has led to a strong commitment to exhibition installations and community engagement projects. A part of a belief in interdisciplinary thinking, Studio Joseph works in graphic design, media, technology, industrial design, and lighting design to create immersive environments for shared learning. Before founding Studio Joseph, Wendy had a distinguished twelve-year tenure at Pei Cobb Freed & Partners. She is a licensed architect, holding NCARB certification, and is a LEED Accredited Professional.

Joseph received a Rome Prize in Architecture from the American Academy in Rome, a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, and is an Academician of the National Academy of Design. As an active participant in professional leadership, she was the president of the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, chairman of the AIA National Committee of Design, and president of the Architectural League of New York. She currently the president of the National Academy, and a board member of the American Ballet Theatre and Second Stage Theatre and City as Living Laboratory (CaLL).

Joseph holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania, summa cum laude, and a Master in Architecture from Harvard Graduate School of Design. She was on the Weitzman Board of Advisors from 1992-2007 serving as Chair of the Board for almost a decade. She was also a member of the University of Pennsylvania Board of Trustees.

Stuart Weitzman, W’63 built the footwear company, Stuart Weitzman, into one of the world’s most renowned fashion footwear brands. Weitzman’s passion for design has been a lifelong pursuit as he began working in his father’s Massachusetts shoe factory while still in college. After graduating from the Wharton School, Weitzman applied himself to the industry with laser-like focus, eventually building the globally-renowned company that bears his name

In 2015, he orchestrated the sale of Stuart Weitzman, LLC to Coach (which was renamed Tapestry in October 2017 to reflect its multi-brand identity). Weitzman stayed on as the Creative Director for the company through May 2017 at which time he became Chairman Emeritus. Since stepping down from an active role in business, Weitzman has pursued myriad interests. He is a sought-after lecturer at universities around the world, and he also mentors the many students who seek his counsel on starting their own businesses. He is currently supporting the development of a museum in Madrid, Spain, dedicated to Spanish-Jewish history. He co-produced two plays one that opened on Broadway in 2019 and the other is expected to open in London in 2021. As a member of the Board of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Foundation, he also contributes to the success of our aspiring Olympic athletes, and has been one himself, by representing the United States in table tennis at the Maccabiah Olympic Games.

In February of 2019, Penn named its School of Design in honor of Weitzman, in recognition of both his ongoing philanthropic support of the University and his active engagement in its academic activities. He currently is a member of the School’s Board of Advisors, and teaches an Entrepreneur in Residence class regularly at the School.

Host/Moderator:

Mark L. Gardner, MArch’00, AIA, NOMA, is Principal at Jaklitsch / Gardner Architects. Located in New York City, J/GA is an award-winning design practice and studio that works across scales from product design to interiors to buildings. Gardner has led many of J/GA’s design initiatives, and works to best understand the role of design as a social practice. His firm has won an AIA National Honor Award and numerous AIANY, NOMA and Architizer design awards. The practice is currently working with a non-profit partner on a Honey Bee Study Center in Dodoma, Tanzania.

Gardner is the Assistant Professor of Architectural Practice and Society at the School of the Constructed Environments, Parsons the New School. He is on the Board of Advisors for the University of Pennsylvania Stuart Weitzman School Of Design, where he is helping the school study issues of diversity and inclusion. He also currently serves on the Board of Youth Design Center (YDC), a nonprofit on a mission to reduce the number of disconnected youth in Brownsville, Brooklyn by lowering their barriers to entry to the STEAM professions and increasing their relevant experience in the innovation economy. Gardner is a Past President and currently serves as Advocacy Chair for nycobaNOMA, the New York Chapter of the National Organization of Minority Architects. He is a member of the AIANY Exhibition Committee and Past Co-Chair and current member of the AIANY Diversity & Inclusion Committee, which he helped to restart with Venesa Alicea. Gardner is Vanguard Member of the Van Alen Institute’s Board of Trustees and a Fellow of the Urban Design Forum.

If you require any accessibility accommodation, such as live captioning, audio description, or a sign language interpreter, please email news@design.upenn.edu to let us know what you need. Please note, we require at least 48 hours’ notice. If you register within 48 hours of this event, we won’t be able to secure the appropriate accommodations.